The need for increased bandwidth is straining the architecture of fiber optic infrastructure. With an ever increasing amount of optical transmission, fiber management is more challenging than ever before. Fiber switching and cross connects add to this complexity as does the density of the individual fiber management systems. The increasing number of patch cords and fan-out cables required to connect modem infrastructure is problematic not only from a cable management perspective, but also from an operations standpoint (e.g., cooling).
One approach to solve this problem is a low cost fiber interconnect system that can handle complex optical cross connects and reduce space. This space reduction is essential as high data rate processors are requiring more energy, and cooling these processors becomes critical to maintain the system reliability and performance.
A preferred low cost interconnect system is a fiber optical flex circuit (OFX). Such circuits comprise of a number of individual fibers which have been precisely positioned into a predetermined form or pattern, and fixed in place using a special coating designed to bond the fibers together in position. In some applications, the fibers are disposed on a sheet of thermally-stable material (e.g., Kapton) allowing these circuits to withstand a wide temperature range of −40 to +85° C. These thin foils are very efficient in terms of space saving and structured fiber management. Such fiber circuits can route fibers in almost any pattern, and therefore offer a solution to most fiber management problems. The most common applications include fiber on the board, board to board, back bone cross connections, and harsh military and aerospace applications.
Although use of flexible optical circuits reduces space requirements, Applicant recognizes that space is so limited in many applications that often securing such optical circuits to a cabinet or other framework is problematic. For example, securing these optical circuits traditionally requires the use of clips or other mechanical devices. However, limitations in space may interfere with the use of such devices. Accordingly, there is a need for a flexible optical circuit that can be secured in place without the need for bulky and clumsy mechanical devices. The present invention fulfills this need among others.